£10m Payout For Injured Footballer From Portsmouth

A promising footballer, from Portsmouth, who suffered catastrophic injuries in a road accident has won a compensation package worth £10 million.

Jack Farrugia was 17 when the accident happened, he was wearing a seatbelt in the front-seat of a car when the driver lost control and collided with a stationary van.

Mr Farrugia, who was studying for a diploma in sports performance and excellence, had led an "exemplary and admirable life" before the crash in November 2008, said Mr Justice Jay at London's High Court today.

The former captain of Havant and Waterlooville Academy FC was a "confident, personable young man, a natural leader, and in excellent physical health and fitness", and would probably have followed a career in football or sports management.

The judge added that, despite his life-changing injuries, Mr Farrugia, now 22, had attended court and appeared to have some understanding of what was going on around him. "The papers refer to Jack's 'great sense of humour', and I observed flashes of that from his demeanour." He paid tribute to the devotion of Mr Farrugia's mother, Lorraine, father, Laurence, and younger brothers, Joe and Tom, who had worked tirelessly in his best interests. "Fortunately for them, all the stress associated with this litigation over the past four years or so is about to come to an end."

Mr Farrugia, who lives in a converted bungalow in Drayton, Portsmouth, suffered a very severe brain injury and was in a coma for more than a month.

He was eventually discharged home more than three years after the accident and requires round-the-clock care.

The damages, comprising a lump sum of £4.2 million and lifelong annual payments of £255,000, will be paid by Quinn Insurance Ltd, which had disputed the level of daytime and night-time care needed.